Typewriter ruling pen



y 1950 R. H. GILLMOR TYPEWRITER RULING PEN Filed Aug. 29, 1947 v INVENTOR. ZMwr-dfifzil Patented July 25, 1950 TYPEWRITER RULING PEN -R-ichard H. Gillmor, Severna Park, Md. Application August 29, 1947, Serial No. 771,217

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to marking devices adapted to .be associated with typewriters for underscoring words or ruling lines on sheets of paper inserted in the typewriters.

An important object of my invention is to provide a ruling pen adapted to be attached to a typewriter and capable of ruling lines either longitudinally or transversely of'a sheet of paper passing over the platen of the typewriter and without necessitating any adjustment of the pen torender it eifective for ruling in either direction.

Another object of my invention is to provide a typewriter ruling pen of the above character which has a ball marking point so that it is capable of sliding over the paper without gouging, regardless of the relative movement of the .pen and paper.

.Still another object is to provide a typewriter ruling pen of the above character which is so constructed and arranged as to be mounted upon acrossbar on the typewriter in a readily accessible position at the .front of the typewriter and including means to permit the pen to be manually moved into and out of'operative marking position with respect to the paper supported on the platen as occasion may require.

A further object of my invention is to provide a typewriter ruling pen of the above character which is capable of being mounted upon crossbars of different cross-sectional size and shape so that the pen may be used, without the necessity for modification, with typewriters of various styles or makes.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following detailed description of a me ferred embodiment of the invention, reference being made to the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure 1 is 'a side view of a ruling pen embodying the invention mounted upon the presserroll carrying crossbar of the carriage of a typewriter .and inmarking engagement with a sheet of paper wound about the platen of the typewriter;

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective View of the ruling pen of Fig. 1 and a portion of the crossbar to which it is attached;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view through the ruling pen and crossbar in-clamped position;

Figure 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional View similar to that of Fig. 3 showing the ruling pen in release position; and

Figure 5 is a detail view of the writing portion of the ruling pen showing the manner in which the ball point is secured to the pen.

In Fig. l of the drawing is shown a ruling pen A mounted upon the presser-roll carrying crossbar 13 of the carriage of a typewriter (not shown) and having its marking point bearing against a sheet of paper C inserted in the typewriter and extending over the platen roll D.

The ruling pen A comprises a generally rectangular block of metal I one end of which is curved downwardly and inwardly to define a horn 2. The horn 2 is provided with a bore 3 extending from its lower end upwardly and opening through the flat upper surface of the block, being closed by a removable screw-threaded plug 4 which engages mating screw-threads on the interior of the bore. The bore tapers downwardly and inwardly towards its lower end, terminating in a restricted opening within which is mounted a ball .5. A cap 2a soldered or cemented upon the exterior of the horn 2 retains the ball rotatably in contact with the lower end of the horn in closing relation with respect to the restricted opening, this ball projecting outwardly a short distance therefrom to define a marking point. The inside of the bore 3 is filled with an ink-soaked wadding in surface contact with the ball. The block I with its horn 2 thus serves as an ink receptacle so that when the ball is rolled in contact with a sheet of paper, the ink is transferred by the ball from the wadding to the paper.

The end of the block l remote from the horn 2 is recessed to provide an open-ended pocket 6.

A pivoted arm 1 is supported adjacent its end upon a pin 8 extending between the side walls of the pocket and passing through an opening provided in the arm. The outer end of the arm 1-- that is, the end of the arm remote from the pin 8-is arcuately formed to define a movable jaw 3; while the end of the block 2 is extended :and similarly formed beyond the open end of the pocket to define a companion stationary jaw H).

Within the pocket and secured to its door by means of a screw II is a flat leaf spring l2. One end of the leaf spring is curled upwardly so as to yieldingly press against the arm 7 and tend to snap it to open position, while the opposite end is similarly curved upwardly so as to extend into the space between the jaws 9 and so, as shown in Fig. 3,v and exert pressure against the crossbar B. In addition to allowing the ruling pen to be readily moved back and forth or up and down upon the crossbar the pen is held in any position of adjustment thereon.

A retaining strap 1 3 snuglyencircling the block I is arranged to be slid back and forth along the block from a positionoverlying the arm 1 (as indicated in Fig. 3) to a position beyond the arm (as indicated in 4). Thus, when the strap is is shifted so as to overlie the arm i, the latter is held down against the action of spring H! with the jaws 8 and ill of the arm and block frictionally engaging the circumference of the crossbar B; and when the strap 13 is retracted along the block to uncover the arm i, he latter is swung upwardly by the spring ii! to release the crossbar. The slide band i3 is shaped on its portion overlying the top of the block '2 to provide a finger grip M adapted to be grasped between the thumb and forefinger when the strap is to be shifted.

The sides extending between the top and bottom faces of the block I may be concavely ground, as indicated at la, to conveniently accommodate the fingers when the ruling pen is to be swung upwardly or downwardly upon the crossbar into and out of ruling engagement with the sheet of paper on the platen.

The proposed manner of use of the ruling pen will be apparent from the foregoing description. When the ruling pen A is associated with the crossbar B of a typewriter, the retaining strap I3 is slid forwardly to the position shown in Fig. 4

which allows the leaf spring l2 to raise the arm 1 and separate the movable jaw 9 sufficiently far B to be introduced therebetween. Then the strap 3 is slipped backwardly so as to cover the arm I and hold the movable jaw 9 closed toward the stationary jaw I and clamping the crossbar therebetween. The curved end of the leaf spring I2 exerts pressure against the crossbar and thus holds the block against accidental displacement. .To rule transverse lines upon the sheet of paper C wound over the platen roll D the sides of the block 2 are gripped between the thumb and forefinger and moved lengthwise of the crossbar, the

ball 5 transferring ink from the wadding filling the bore 3 to the paper. When longitudinal lines ,areto be drawn, the sheet of paper is simply rolled either upwardly or downwardly over the platen. The device is especially suitable for use when tabulation work is being done upon a typewriter and columnar division lines must be drawn in both transverse and longitudinal directions. Because the marking point of 'my ruling pen is constituted of a spherical member having free rolling contact with the sheet of paper, no adjustments are re- .quired to condition the pen for ruling either crosswise or lengthwise of the sheet but the pen will function equally as well in either of these directions without any danger of injuring the paper or the platen by scratching or gouging, such as .would be the case with pens of the wheel or stylus types as have been heretofore proposed as typewriter ruling pens.

Moreover, the ruling pen is capable of use with typewriters having crossbars of different diameters. When the ruling pen is clamped to a crossbar larger in size than the crossbar B shown in the drawing, the arm I, when the jaws 9 and 10 are moved into clamping engagement with the crossbar, will incline slightly upwardly above the plane of the fiat top of the block I and as a consequence the strap 13 will ride up on the arm onl until it makes binding engagement with the arm. To meet this condition, the arm is constructed, as best shown in Fig. 3, with its upper may be supported in the ink receptacle in other 7 ways such as are known in the fountain pen art.

the spirit of my invention as defined by the folfrom the stationary jaw -l 0 to permit the crossbar lowing claims.

I claim:

1. A typewriter ruling pen comprising an elongated block having a hollow, horn-shaped member directed laterally therefrom adjacent one end to define an ink receptacle, said horn-shaped member having an outlet communicating with the ink receptacle, a ball rotatably mounted. in the outlet and projecting therefrom to define a marking member and a clamp for removably mounting said block upon a typewriter. M

2. A typewriter ruling pen comprising an elongated block having a hollow, horn-shaped member directed laterally therefrom adjacent one end to define an ink receptacle, said horn having an outlet communicating with the ink receptacle,

a ball rotatably mounted in the outlet and projecting therefrom to define a marking member and a clamp upon the opposite end of the block for removably mounting said block upon the crossbar. of a typewriter, said clamp comprising a stationar jaw and a movable jaw and a retainer for holding the jaws in clamping position. y

3. A typewriter ruling pen as set forth in claim 2 in which the retainer comprises a strap 'slidable longitudinally of the block into and out of overlying relation with the movable jaw.

4. A typewriter ruling pen as set forth in claim 2 in which the end of the block remote from the horn shaped member is recessed to provide a pocket and a spring mounted in said pocket bearing against the movable jaw and tending to swing said movable jaw away from the stationary jaw, said spring having a portion extending into the space between the jaws defining a friction member adapted to bear against the crossbar.

5. A typewriter ruling pen as set forth in claim 2 in which the ball is rotatably maintained in association with the horn by means of an aperture cap fitting over the outlet end of the horn and encircling the ball.

6. The combination with a typewriter having a roll platen and a crossbar extending parallel to the platen, of a ruling pen comprising a block having a hollow horn-shaped member directed therefrom adjacent one end to define an ink receptacle, said horn-shaped member having an outlet communicating with the ink receptacle, a ball rotatably mounted in the outlet and projecting therefrom to define a marking member and a clamp for removably mounting said block upon the crossbar.

RICHARD H. GILLMOR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: .UNITED STATES PATENTS Pereira Nov. 22, 1921 

